A/N: I've never done a Year That Never Was fic as I've always been slightly terrified of it - everyone has their own interpretation of what went on in the Valiant and mine's somewhat macabre. But recently my plot bunny has been nibbling extra hard so I relented and did it.

This mostly definitely a standalone oneshot but at the same time is sort of an addition to my Destiny Universe, expanding on a story Jack explained to Braxiatel in Time. But you don't need to have read the Destiny series!

I'm fascinated with Jack and the Doctor's relationship and the kind of love they are capable of sharing, which I'd like to point out now in my world is just platonic. But I think it's more meaningful than any sexual relationship could be (if that makes sense...) and I'm hoping that this goes some way to sort of explaining my strange perception on it.

It is particularly whumpy for the first bit but then it's mostly comfort.

22 Weeks

Jack was finally taken out of his bonds around October time. It was good to finally have his arms at his sides with full circulation pumping through them, but he was still very wary. He knew this sudden display of kindness wasn't any kind of reward for being good. The Master didn't really believe in rewards.

No word of explanation was given as he was escorted by armed men to the ballroom, where to his surprise he found the entire crew of the Valiant gathered - Francine, Leo and Tish included. He flickered his eyes across their terrified faces, but didn't dare make any indication of greeting as he caught sight of the Master. The insane Time Lord was smiling at him gleefully, standing next to the Doctor who had been youthed again and tied prone to the end of the long table. He was unconscious, layers of fresh bruises and cuts covering him indicating a recent onslaught. It was sickening Jack that seeing the Doctor in such a state was becoming very normal.

"Ah! Here you are!" the Master enthused to Jack. "You've missed a great morning. Let me fill you in," he said, clicking his fingers. A soldier immediately rushed forward to give him a bucket of water. Without hesitation the Master poured the contents over the Doctor's head, causing the prisoner to immediately cough and splutter into consciousness, his eyes snapping open. Jack could see him immediately frantically scanning the room, confused and disorientated. He saw the crowd of people including Jack, and quickly refocused.

"Master," the Doctor gasped. "Don't do this."

The Master continued, making no indication of even noticing the Doctor. "It's come to my attention there been a few mishaps around here recently, and I think it's time we cleared the air, just so we're one big happy family again. Like a lovely counselling session, I suppose. Let me vent first. Francine dropped a glass earlier, and we've managed to clear the air on that…"

Jack looked back at the Doctor. One of his wounds, a line carved into his bare chest by something sharp was still bleeding. Jack didn't need a degree in nuclear science to work that one out.

"... But now I've been told that Robert lost his gun."

The Master jumped onto the table where the Doctor was bound, and kicked him hard in the side. The Doctor choked, but didn't cry out.

"Sam was off duty cos he was ill," the Master said mockingly, and swung another kick at the Doctor. "Leo here stole a key earlier." Kick. The choked sound the Doctor gave increased in breath, but nothing more. He was fighting crying out because of the others in the room, Jack knew. But he was quite sure that would only make the Master more agitated.

He wasn't wrong. The Master glared at the Doctor. "Little Tosh tried to escape," he persisted, and this time launched an exceptionally hard kick to the Doctor. The Doctor's entire body jolted, straining against the ropes that held him, but he still didn't cry out.

The Master glared at him some more, and held out a hand again. A soldier quickly deposited a cricket bat into his hands. He raised it high in the air. Jack instinctively closed his eyes, but he had nothing to stop himself hearing the sound as the bat connected with its intended target.

"I." Thunk. "Don't." Thunk. "Like." Thunk. "Mishaps!"

The Master hit the helpless Time Lord three more times with the bat, something seemingly breaking with each progressive hit until finally the Doctor relented, and cried out in pain. Jack forced his eyes open to see the Master finally smile and pull the bat away.

"Please, Koschei, please," the Doctor suddenly croaked desperately. Jack's heart and stomach seemed to swap places instantaneously at the sound of the helpless Time Lord's pleas. "You don't have to do this…"

The Master completely ignored him, placing a foot on the Doctor's clearly already damaged right shoulder. The Doctor tore out another scream, which quickly raised in pitch as the Master put his entire weight on it. Jack flinched, dying to run forward to save his friend, but all he could do was stand there...

The Master inclined to one of his soldiers, who brought over a sealed black box promptly. The Master opened the box and pulled out a long, ominous black rod. He pressed it to the Doctor's neck.

"Please, no, just think..." the Doctor begged, choking out his pitiful words through an onslaught of tears.

The Master completely ignored him. "And if anyone, anyone creates another mishap, then…"

He pulled the trigger, and immediately the Doctor's howls once again filled the echoey room as electricity coursed through every part of his body. He contorted, spasmed and screamed until the Master let go of the trigger and moved the end to the Doctor's stomach. He pulled the trigger again, and evoked exactly the same reaction. He then did it a third time to his groin, and the screams almost broke into ultrasound.

The Master threw away the rod and knelt down, digging his knee into the Doctor's bruised ribs. He inclined towards his soldiers again, and one quickly moved forward with a pair of black leather gloves.

"No!" Jack cried - he couldn't help himself. Immediately he knew it had been a mistake as the Master looked at him whilst carefully pulling on the gloves and doing up the straps.

"I'm sorry, do you want a go, Freak?" the Master said snidely. He laughed at Jack's silence, grabbed a fistful of the Doctor's hair in his left hand and began to punch him in the face with his right.

"Please!" the Doctor began to beg again somewhere underneath each impact.

The Master stopped, leaning in closer to his old foe. "Pardon?"

"Please stop," the Doctor gasped, his face rapidly beginning to bruise and swell.

The Master punched him immediately. "Say it again!" he demanded.

"Pl-Please stop…!"

"Say my name."

"The Master," the Doctor whined out between swollen lips.

"Put it together, come on now, there's a good boy," the Master ordered.

"Please st-stop, M-Master…"

"Why?"

"It h-hurts..."

"Does it hurt? Aww, diddums," the Master taunted, and punched the Doctor twice more in the face.

"Please," the Doctor begged again. Jack was praying that the Doctor would stop begging the Master very soon. It only seemed to make it worse. And sure as the sun rose, the Master punched him three more times. Jack could barely recognise the Doctor anymore under the horrific damage to his face.

Please pass out.

"Give up yet?" the Master demanded to know, spitting in the Doctor's face as he spoke.

"Y-yes," the Doctor croaked.

"So you'd rather I did this to the perpetrator of the crime? Francine? Tish? I'd be very happy to leave you alone and dish out punishments to who committed the actual crime."

Jack felt Tish shiver next to him at the mere thought of going through what the Doctor was.

"No," the Doctor replied quietly. "Pl-please leave them a-alone."

"You bewilder me, you really do," the Master said whimsically, and beckoned over one of the soldiers. "Let's test this. Let's see how far your diehard selflessness goes. This is Gareth. He was the one yesterday. You remember that, don't you?"

There was a pause, shortly followed by another punch.

"You remember what Gareth did to you, don't you!?" the Master demanded more forcefully.

"Y-yes," the Doctor sobbed.

"And you're going to protect him? Him of all people?"

"Yes."

"So if Gareth did something wrong right now, you would take the punishment for it? Even after what he did?"

"… Yes."

"You stupid, pathetic Snail," Master snarled, and waved away the soldier. "I bet I know why. You want this, don't you?"

The Doctor didn't reply, just gasping through tears.

The Master tensed his fist up, drawing it back in a fully loaded punch. "You want this."

"... I want this," the Doctor whined. his words were now mangled and slurred.

"You never had to answer for the Time War. You killed our people, our race, and just sauntered on with that pathetic smile and your stupid little human friends clinging to your every word, treating you like the hero. But you're guilty, Doctor. You want punishment for what you did. Isn't that right?"

"... Yes," the Doctor whispered. Jack couldn't even tell if he was telling the truth or lying just to make the Master stop punching him. He severely hoped it was the latter.

"I'm doing you a favour, actually," the Master told the Doctor. "Because I'm a really nice friend. This is your punishment, Doctor. This is you, paying for your crimes at last. Back on Gallifrey you'd have been put to death but me? No!" the Master enthused, smiling. "I'm not killing you, I'm here to rebuild your character. Rehabilitation, if you like. Call it my little gift. Oh, what's that?" the Master suddenly leant forward, hand to his ear. "Didn't quite catch that?"

"... Thank you," the Doctor croaked promptly.

"Louder. I don't think everyone heard you."

"Thank you!" the Doctor yelped.

"So really, this whole situation is all your fault, isn't it? So what do you say?"

"It's m-my fault, M-Master."

"Louder!" the Master demanded, punching him again.

"It's my fault, M-Master!"

The Master dealt another punch. This time Jack heard something break.

"You and your little human race. If I told you to jump off a cliff to save a tramp you would wouldn't you? Pathetic. What are you?"

"Pathetic," the Doctor croaked promptly.

"Louder!" the Master screamed in his damaged face.

"I'm p-pathetic!" the Doctor cried out.

The Master lifted his head, and slammed it onto the table. Immediately the Doctor fell completely limp as he immediately passed out.

Thank God.

"That's my favourite way to shut him up," the Master snarled, standing up. His flicked his now bloody glove, red drips spraying the floor. He then signalled for another device, this time a scanner of some kind, running it down the other Time Lord. It beeped out the results urgently, and to Jack's disgust he began to laugh. "Oh wow. I actually punched him so hard he's got brain damage."

Jack felt a rush of fire wash through him. He could barely restrain himself as the Master looked at him.

"You. Freak. Take him down to the Pit. I don't want to see him until his brain damage fixes. He's more fun when he's trying to appeal to my better nature. And how long since he was fed?" he asked, directing the question at one of his soldiers.

"Two months, sir," the soldier replied immediately.

The Master sighed. "Precisely?"

"I'm sorry sir. One month and twenty-four days."

The Master's lips curled. "See? That's not two months, is it? Another mishap!"

He kicked the unconscious Doctor. Something else broke.

"Let's see," the Master mused. "He's on the verge of malnourishment. Good. how about bread? Got to keep my favourite man strong. And Freak, you're there too. Feeling your wrongness all day will drive him mad."

Jack didn't answer that. He simply walked forward and quickly untied the ropes holding the Doctor down, struggling to stop his hands from shaking. The Master didn't move, still stood on the table looking down at the Doctor with a smile at a job well done. Jack desperately tried to ignore the overwhelming urge to tear him to pieces and instead concentrated on scooping up the Doctor. His broken body felt like jelly in his arms.

"Hurry up!" the Master prompted, jumping down off of the table. "There's a good freak."

Jack left as quickly as he could, followed by a small legion of soldiers pointing their guns to his head.

The Pit was a place Jack had only ever heard of, but never been to. There were rumours and echoes of stories the soldiers exchanged of a dark, grubby room originally designed for waste disposal, with only one round hatch at the top to put the waste in and another to dump the waste out of the Valiant. Ordinarily it would be attached to another ship or something on the ground for dumping, but now it was the Master's favourite method of execution. He would put the victim inside the Pit and seal up the hatch at the top. He'd then unlock the outer hatch for the victim to open at their leisure, and leave them until they starved to death, or took a leap of faith.

It was exactly like the rumours. A grotty, hot, stinking room covered in blood and dirt. He and the Doctor had been forced down the hatch, Jack trying to be as careful as he could in lowering the Time Lord's unconscious body through the opening so he didn't aggravate his injuries. The soldiers had then thrown down a bag and sealed up the top hatch, the room casted into abject blackness before the emergency lighting came up.

The Doctor looked even worse in emergency lighting.

Jack retrieved the bag and pulled out the contents - a loaf of bread, some rags and a clean shirt. Without hesitation he made the Doctor as comfortable as he could, using the rags to stifle the blood and make some headway into supporting his broken body. It took a good twenty minutes until he had done everything he could, before he pulled the shirt on the unconscious Doctor, disguising the injuries to his torso. He then placed a hand on the Doctor's swollen and bruised face, kissing his forehead.

"You'll be okay," Jack promised the unconscious Time Lord. "I'm looking after you."

The Doctor didn't even twitch.

It had been five hours so far, and Jack was beginning to panic. The Doctor wasn't waking up, and any thoughts of a healing coma were disparaged quickly after Jack checked for the signs. The first time the Doctor had entered a healing coma he had explained to Jack what the process was and what to expect, but the Master quickly put a stop to that. The next time the Doctor had sunk into a healing coma the Master had attacked his mind so badly that the Doctor woke up with his nose gushing blood, his entire body shaking and barely able to move or speak. He hadn't dared enter a healing coma since.

It flickered across Jack's mind that maybe this was it. This was all the Doctor could take. What had the Master said? Brain damage? Was it a step too far? Jack would have to ask for the Master's help - the Master wouldn't let the Doctor die, he knew that. He enjoyed displaying his dominance over the Doctor too much; acting like a lion keeping its rival in check to control its pride. But Jack couldn't ask for his help. For the first time in what seemed like forever the Master was finally leaving the Doctor alone for a prolonged amount of time, and Jack was desperate for it to stay that way.

To Jack's great relief, one hour later the Doctor woke up. The only indication of it was the pained moan that escaped his lips, but otherwise he remained completely limp.

Jack reacted immediately. "Doctor."

"No, no, no," the Doctor mumbled out, trying to move but his limbs were too weak.

"It's me, it's Jack," Jack said quickly, reaching up to the Doctor's face. Almost immediately the Doctor's entire body spasmed violently and he screamed - a scream which seemed to throw Jack physically back about five feet across the room.

"Don't, don't, please, I obey, I obey," the Doctor whined out quickly and quietly in a pathetic voice.

"Doc, it's me, it's Jack," Jack said quickly, daring to inch forward. "It's Jack."

"Get away, get away, get away," the Doctor gasped.

"It's me, it's okay," Jack persisted. "I'm Jack, it's okay."

"No," the Doctor moaned. "Stop, stop. Let me see."

"What?"

"I can't see!" the Doctor whined. It broke Jack's heart. The Master's relentless assault had blinded him...

"Doctor…"

"Leave me alone!" the Doctor wailed.

"I'm not going to do anything, I swear. Let me help."

"You're wrong. It hurts," the Doctor begged, covering his head with his hands.

Jack's heart sank. He couldn't even touch him without hurting him. "Just let me help. Please. You need to eat. You're malnourished."

"Leave me alone!" the Doctor cried again. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, Koschei, I'm sorry…"

The Doctor continued to mutter feverishly, and all Jack could do was sit there, unable to help.

Jack had lost track of time. He had no idea how long he and the Doctor had been in the Pit, but it felt like an eternity. The Doctor was fading in and out of consciousness, muttering alien languages, begging for respite from the Master's violence and Jack's wrongness, as well as forgetting and realising anew each time he woke up that he was blind. That smile, that personality, that identity Jack had loved before had been shot aside by the Master - the man he knew as the Doctor wasn't the one sitting in front of him.

And he was weakening. Jack could see that. He needed food, and Jack needed to sort out his makeshift bandages that were now smeared in blood where his wounds had re-opened. The Doctor was blind, brain damaged, confused and terrified. He needed help.

But he wouldn't let Jack touch him.

He would have to force help on the Doctor, whether the Time Lord wanted it or not. But Jack already knew - he couldn't help him unless the Doctor let him in.

Was there a way to get to the Doctor inside this man's head?

Maybe there was.

As silent hour after silent hour ticked by, Jack's plan evolved from a notion of an insane plan to become fully formed insane plan.

He'd managed to convince himself it would work. It had to. There was no other way.

He looked up at the Doctor, still sat up against the wall with dried blood covering him. Jack shuffled nervously, watching the Doctor pant for a moment, before he moved forward. The Doctor seemed to know he was coming, his breathing suddenly increasing in volume and rate. As Jack moved closer the Doctor's breath increased further, until Jack put his arms around the Time Lord in a gentle hug.

The Doctor's screams seemed to instantaneously break the sound barrier.

"I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you," Jack said calmly and clearly directly into the Doctor's ear under the Doctor's screams, holding him as gently as he could. "I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you. I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you."

The Doctor continued to scream but Jack held on for ten long minutes, repeating his words in a mantra. He didn't stop repeating, and the Doctor didn't stop screaming.

When Jack finally let go, the Doctor immediately cried. Jack quickly got as far away from him as he could, curling up in the opposite corner in the foetal position.

He hated this.

But he had to keep repeating it.

I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you.

I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you.

I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you.

The words were now so ingrained in Jack for so long he barely knew how to say anything else, and with every passing minute it seemed to the ex-Time Agent more and more pointless.

The Doctor still screamed. He still cried. He was still in his own little world, desperate to keep the wrongness of the immortal away from his broken mind and body. He wasn't relenting. Not in the slightest.

But Jack had no other plan.

He moved forward again.

"I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you," he said under the screams, his tone almost one of defeat. "I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you."

Minutes passed.

Jack was about to let go, when suddenly, the Doctor's screams died away.

For a moment Jack didn't register this fact, until he felt the Doctor suddenly begin to shake even more in his arms. The immortal drew back abruptly, still keeping his hands on the Time Lord, until finally the Doctor opened his mouth.

"Jack?" he whispered.

"Yes," Jack answered immediately, desperate to keep his voice calm. "I'm Jack. I love you. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Jack," the Doctor said again, as though he were a child struggling to say a new word.

"Yes, Jack," Jack repeated. "I love you. I'm not going to hurt you."

"Jack…"

Jack wanted to kiss him, but quickly stopped himself. Instead, he moved his hands to rest on the Doctor's chest, over each of his hearts. The Doctor flinched and began to shake and spasm, but still didn't scream.

"I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you," Jack said again, and pulled his hands away. He quickly backed right up into the corner as he usually did, but this time he was smiling as the Doctor passed out again.

I'm Jack, I love you, I'm not going to hurt you.

The screams had stopped, and the Doctor was then just crying and shaking. Soon he stopped crying, and soon after that he stopped shaking. The Time Lord could only say Jack's name, but Jack didn't care. It was a semblance of conscious and awareness that he'd been missing for so long.

Soon the Doctor no longer tensed up in Jack's grip. Soon the immortal dared to hold him tighter, with more feeling and meaning, until one day the Doctor woke up and once again said Jack's name.

"I'm here, I'm Jack," Jack said. "I love you. I'm not going to hurt you."

"H-hold me," the Doctor suddenly said.

Jack's heart almost burst with joy, but he kept calm and approached the Time Lord as carefully as he had the first time. He held him, daring for it to be tight and protective.

The Doctor relaxed again, and passed out.

Jack was still holding the Doctor went suddenly the sound of the hatch opening came from above. Jack quickly let go of the Doctor, backing up into the corner, which stirred the Doctor immediately.

"Jack," he said, but seconds later the hatch opened and there was the Master, grinning down at them both.

"Doctor!" he enthused, throwing down a ladder and descending, a soldier with a gun in tow.

Jack watched as the Doctor badly flinched at the sound of the Master's voice.

"Leave him alone," the ex-Time Agent said. He couldn't help it. The Master turned to him, raising an incredulous eyebrow.

"I'm sorry, was that an order?" he asked dangerously.

"No, sorry, no," Jack said quickly, looking at the floor. He didn't want to make the Time Lord angry. The Doctor would be the one to suffer.

The Master looked back at the Doctor. "Hello, Doctor? Say hello. I'll know if you're faking it so you'd better do as I say."

"... Jack," was all the Doctor managed to reply.

The Master rolled his eyes, drew out his scanner and checked the other Time Lord. "Nope, still brain damaged, and… oh! He's blind! I didn't realise. I do get carried away sometimes, don't I?"

He moved closer to the Doctor. Jack tensed, his fists tightening slightly as slowly the Master reached out to the Doctor's temple…

As soon as he made contact, the Doctor screamed so loudly the Master jumped back in alarm, and the guard nearly fired his gun. But the Master quickly recovered, holding up a hand to the guard as the Doctor stopped.

"Well, that's new," the Master mused in the dead silence that followed.

"Jack," the Doctor croaked, and suddenly Jack felt very sick as the Master looked at him.

"Why does he keep saying your name?"

"I don't know," Jack lied.

The Master rolled his eyes. "Come here."

Jack's eyes widened. "No, it hurts him."

"Come here or I'll hurt him," the Master threatened. Jack couldn't refuse him. He moved forward ever so carefully until he was next to the Doctor. The injured Time Lord didn't even tense.

"Touch him," the Master ordered next.

"No, please," Jack begged, terrified of the Master finding out…

The Master took the gun from his guard and aimed it directly at the Doctor's leg, finger braced on the trigger. He looked at Jack, smiled, and gestured with his head. "There's a good little Freak."

Jack tried not to let the Master see his next expression as he unwillingly moved forward with his hand outstretched. As he got closer the Doctor continued to be relaxed. This was bad. This was very bad…

He touched the Doctor's arm, and immediately and subtly, beyond the Master's gaze, dug his long, unkempt fingernails into the Time Lord's skin. As a result the Doctor shrieked with pain and Jack quickly backed off.

The Master gazed at him, his expression as if he knew something else was going on but he couldn't quite be bothered to work out what. After several long, painful seconds, he turned away.

"Tell me when he's brain damage is healed and his sight comes back," the Master directed at the guard. Then they both ascended the ladder and closed the hatch behind them.

Jack's heart was pounding so hard his entire head seemed to be pulsating. He moved forward to the Doctor, repeatedly apologising. He reached out, the Doctor tensed, and as soon as his hand hit flesh the Doctor began to scream. Jack quickly backed off into his corner.

The Master had just single-handedly destroyed days of work. Jack had promised the Doctor he wouldn't hurt him. He just had.

The Doctor wouldn't trust him now.

As the Doctor slipped back into unconsciousness, Jack began to cry.

The tense hours passed by.

Jack remained completely still; curled up in the corner staring at the Time Lord. The Doctor was sweating. He was becoming infected.

Not for the first time, Jack's immortality was proving to be undoubtedly evil.

If he was normal, if he was how he had been, then the Doctor would accept him. It would take a few hours, but the Doctor would still accept him. But the Doctor had his scent. He was a Time Lord trained to associate the smell and sight of what Jack was with 'wrongness'. He was repelled by Jack's very presence - instincts, the Doctor had said. Instinctively the Doctor's body told him to run away from Jack, as though a human would run from a tiger. That was probably what he wanted to do right now, if his body worked. But for one moment, Jack had turned him. Whether it had been the Doctor training himself to associate Jack's wrongness with protection, or even if it was just working on a primitive level - whatever had happened had been beautiful. And now it was destroyed.

So Jack was very surprised when suddenly from out of nowhere, came the Doctor's weak voice.

"Jack."

Jack looked up sharply.

"... Jack?" the Doctor asked again, his brow furrowing.

"Yeah? It's me, it's Jack," Jack said softly, but he didn't dare move forward.

"Here," was all the Doctor managed, and for a moment Jack thought he'd misinterpreted it. Was the Doctor saying 'here' like he was in the room? Or did he…

"Please, here, come," the Doctor murmured. His words were mangled, slurred and barely resembled English, but Jack got the message. He moved forward, still with utter care, and wrapped his arms around the Doctor.

He didn't tense.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," Jack whispered repeatedly, pressing his lips to the Doctor's head. "I had to make out that you hated my touch, I promise, I'm never doing it again, never ever, I'm sorry, I love you."

"Jack," the Doctor whispered, and passed out, utterly relaxed, in Jack's arms.

Just as the Doctor usually did, he had forgiven Jack.

The days passed by, as slowly but surely, the Doctor began to speak with more coherence. His words became unglued, Jack was able to clean his wounds and progressively feed him larger and larger chunks of food. The Doctor had also managed to drop into small healing comas on occasion.

He didn't like Jack leaving his side, and the only times Jack did was when the guards came. As soon as Jack left the Doctor would tense up, seemingly knowing as soon as he wasn't near Jack's scent he was going to get hurt. And he was usually right. When they came, they more often than not delivered a condescending message from the Master accompanied by punch or kick. In the end, Jack just kept holding on him when he could. Just so he knew when he was safe. He'd heal better that way.

"Jack?" the Doctor suddenly said, breaking Jack out of a doze. Jack immediately tightened his arms around him.

"I'm here, I'm not going anywhere."

"Jack, I can't see."

Jack swallowed, looking at him. His eyes were open, but didn't dilate with the light as they hadn't for what seemed like forever. "Yeah, he punched you so hard he blinded you."

"Where are we?"

"In the Pit. This is the best you've talked for a while. How are you feeling?"

The Doctor blinked rapidly, before squeezing his eyes shut and opening them again. "I feel like I had brain damage."

"I think you've finally healed it," Jack supposed.

"Where's the Master?"

"Don't worry about him. He won't be back for a while. It's just us two."

"Everything hurts."

"I know," Jack said softly.

"I can't do this anymore."

Jack swallowed nervously. "Yes, you can."

"My face feels broken."

Jack looked at his face, still swollen and bruised and out of alignment from the Master's assault. But he was still beautiful. "I think it is. You're still very pretty though."

"Stop it."

Jack grinned. "There he is. We just need to take this. Martha'll be back soon."

"I can't do this. I can't take it."

"Yes, you can."

"I'm pathetic," the Doctor whined.

Jack's eyes narrowed, hit by a memory from days before. "No you're not, don't you dare start believing what he forces you to say."

Suddenly the hatch opened. Jack quickly backed away, and the Doctor immediately tensed at Jack's absence. The ladder came down, a guard appeared with a tray of food which he deposited on the ground, before he moved towards the Doctor.

"The Master says get better soon," the guard said somewhat apologetically, and launched another punch to the Time Lord's face.

Jack couldn't stop himself this time, launching to his feet as the Doctor reeled. "Do you get off on this!?" he yelled at the guard. "Are you fucking enjoying your job!?"

The guard could barely meet his eye. "I'm sorry," he whispered, and quickly left.

As soon as the hatch was sealed Jack went straight back to the Doctor, pulling him carefully upright. The Doctor coughed, a fresh bruises rapidly developing into yet another layer.

Jack pulled the food towards them. Tepid porridge with not enough liquid. But it was something.

"Open your mouth, I'm gonna feed you," Jack said gently, keeping a hand on the Doctor's arm. The Doctor obeyed, but Jack quickly realised his mouth seemed to now be bleeding.

"Okay, spit first," Jack ordered, trying not to get emotional. The Doctor did; a hunk of red spit hitting the metal they were sitting on.

"Okay," Jack said again patiently. "Here comes the aeroplane."

When the meal was consumed, Jack resumed his station beside the Doctor, holding him. For once the Doctor was fed, safe and away from the dangers of the Master. But Jack knew it wouldn't last for much longer. Soon the Doctor would regain his sight, and the entire thing would start over again.

"I'm tired," the Doctor suddenly announced in the comfortable silence between them.

"You can sleep," Jack said gently. "You're totally safe. I promise. Sleep on me, I'm more comfortable than metal."

The Doctor nodded, his brown eyes looking blindly at Jack's face. "... Thank you," he eventually said.

Jack nodded. "It's okay."

"... Please don't let go."

"No, I won't."

The Doctor quickly slipped off into sleep, leaving Jack beside him, still holding on tight. The words came out of his mouth, almost by instinct. "I'm Jack. I love you. I'm not going to hurt you."

But pretty soon the Master would.

The End